The Fire Reborn
by warriorcatsrock
Summary: A great danger is coming, and the Clans will need all the help they can get to defeat it. The legendary Firestar, along with three other former leaders, are reincarnated to be with the Clans and help them fend off this evil. Full summary inside! Please at least check it out.
1. Prologue

**Hey, it's Wolfstorm, one of the awesome warriorcatsrock! (Long story, go to my profile for details) I'm writing this story by myself, and I'm proud to say this is the first story made on our account. ****(HA! You were too slow, meh friends) **We ARE IN THE process of coming up with a plot that all five of us can work on together. One last thing, I'm not going to beg for reviews, I'm just going to ask this once, PLEASE review! Believe it or not, it actually helps. So anyway, on with the story!

**A great danger is coming, and the Clans will need help if they are to defeat it. The legendary Firestar, along with three other former leaders, is reincarnated in another living body down in the Clans so that they will be prepared to fight this evil. Unfortunatately, the leaders are born in different Clans than they were when they were living. Will they succeed and overpower this darkness, or will the Clans fall to the paws of evil and darkness?**

Prologue

Blanketed by stars, the dark indigo sky filled the night. The moon shone majestically among the stars, lighting up the night with soft light. Leaves rustled gently, and the whisper of a creek could be slightly heard. A light mist shrouded a clearing surrounded by four great oaks. A huge boulder rose up in the center of the clearing.

A small, lithe shape appeared from the trees and leapt nimbly onto the boulder and gazed down at the clearing, waiting. Out of the shadows, more bodies streamed into the clearing below the first cat's watch. Their starry pelts gleamed in the darkness as they poured into the clearing and gazed up expectantly at the first cat. The cats settled down, and the first cat began speaking.

"A great danger is coming," she began solemnly. "A danger that will wipe out all four Clans from the face of the earth." Several of the cats trembled slightly in fear, but a few snorted.

"Tell us something we don't know!" a dark gray she-cat with a broad face yowled. "StarClan know that there is a danger coming, so why did you call us here, Bluestar?"

"This evil will be greater than even the Dark Forest," Bluestar hissed. "This meeting is important, Yellowfang, StarClan must do something before it is too late!"

"What is the evil?" a yowl came from a black and white tom with an extremely long tail. "How can we stop it if we don't know what it is?"

Bluestar closed her eyes for a moment and replied, "I was getting to that, Tallstar. A cat will come, a cat from outside the Clans. Slowly, he will make the young and foolish cats follow him, and eventually he will turn them against the Clans."

"Then it is not much different from Sol, or the Dark Forest," a tabby with a crooked jaw meowed dismissively. "We have experienced a similar threat; surely it won't be that hard to deal with."

"But this threat includes the Dark Forest's plan _and _Sol's plan," Bluestar pointed out. "I assure you, Crookedstar, this battle will be anything but easy."

"What should we do about it?" a black tom questioned. "We'll definitely warn the medicine cats, but other than that, there's not much we can do."

"If we tell the medicine cats, and they tell their Clans, it will spread panic," a flame-colored tom spoke for the first time. "Maybe this time we should come up with a different plan."

"Oh, the great Firestar speaks," the black tom hissed in mock respect. "And I suppose you have a new, wonderful plan?"

"Actually, I do," Firestar retorted, lifting his head and tail in dignity. "I suggest we send one of _us _down to the Clans, and make sure this cat doesn't get his way."

"And what about the other Clans?" the black tom hissed. "Who will we send? You know Firestar, your plans don't always work out _perfectly_ like you want them to. Maybe you should try thinking before you suggest one of your plans again, wasting our time."

"Nightstar!" the black and white tom spat disgustedly. "How dare you speak to Firestar that way? You should be ashamed. After all, Firestar has been Clan leader much longer than you have; he has led his Clan through many moons of hardship. You have no right to insult him when you are much lower than he is. Firestar's wisdom and ideas are always valuable."

The flame-colored tom dipped his head gratefully to the tom. "Thank you, Tallstar. As I was saying, maybe we could send one cat to each of the Clans, that way there will be a… watch for each of the Clans."

Bluestar dipped her head approvingly before turning to the rest of StarClan. "If you agree to this idea, raise your tail." All of the cats' tails shot up, Nightstar's a bit reluctantly. Bluestar turned back to Firestar.

"Who shall we send?" she asked, already assuming that they would carry out Firestar's plan. Firestar looked a bit surprised that everyone accepted his idea so quickly, with the exception of Nightstar. He gazed thoughtfully at the crowd of cats, and decided, "I will go for ThunderClan." He turned to Tallstar, Nightstar, and Crookedstar. "You can decide who goes for your Clans," he offered.

Tallstar stepped forward, nodding to the other former leaders in acknowledgement before he spoke.

"I suggest the leaders, Firestar, Crookedstar, Nightstar, and me, go," he meowed, glancing at the other leaders. Crookedstar nodded in agreement.

"That's fine with me," he mewed. "Nightstar?"

Nightstar nodded grudgingly. "All right," he growled.

Bluestar nodded in satisfaction. "So, just to be clear, the cats to go are Firestar from ThunderClan, Tallstar from WindClan, Crookedstar from RiverClan, and Nightstar from ShadowClan." When no cat objected, she took it for a yes.

"'Fire will save the Clan,'" she murmured ominously. "Along with 'Darkness, air, water, and sky will come together and shake the forest to its roots'. The prophecies are reborn."


	2. Allegiances

**So just to start off the story, here are the allegiances. Uh... nothing else to say, so PEACE!**

ShadowClan Allegiances

Leader: Wolfstar

Black she-cat with yellow eyes

A: Lightningpaw

Golden she-cat with green eyes (sister of Honeypaw)

Deputy: Emberstrike

Black she-cat with white markings and amber eyes

A: Honeypaw

Golden she-cat with green eyes

Medicine Cat: Shimmerpool

Gentle silver tabby with light blue eyes

A: Owlwing

Dark gray tom with amber eyes

Warriors:

Leafblossom

Brown she-cat with leaf-green eyes

A: Dewpaw

White tom with blue eyes

Tigerstripe

Dark brown tabby tom with blue eyes

A: Stormpaw

Gray tom

Blackfeather

Black she-cat with blue eyes

A: Moonpaw

Beautiful silver tabby with striking violet eyes

Nightwhisper

Dark gray tom with green eyes

Swiftfoot

Brown tom with blue eyes

Mapleleaf

Tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Flamestrike

Dark ginger tom

Stormfire

Handsome brown tom with blue eyes

Silverflower

Silver she-cat with green eyes

Queens:

Birdsong

Tortoiseshell with light blue eyes

Mother of Darkkit (crabby black she-kit), Ivykit (light gray tom), and Firekit (flame-colored tom)

Elders:

Sunblaze

Golden she-cat with blue eyes

Spottedclaw

Dappled-gray tom with blue eyes

WindClan Allegiances

Leader: Runningstar

Gray and white tom

A: Heatherpaw

Absent-minded white she-cat

Deputy: Mistystream

Gray she-cat

A: Rockpaw

Serious black tom

Medicine Cat: Mintpool

White she-cat

A: Talloak

Sand-colored tom

Warriors

Smoothstripe

Gray tom

A: Dirtpaw

Dust-colored tom

Gorsefoot

Sand-colored tom white paws and one black ear

Squirreltail

Gray, gold, white she-cat with a long bushy tail

Owlheart

Reddish tom

A: Leafpaw

White and gold she-cat with green eyes

Longface

Huge golden tom

Thornclaw

Strong gray tom

A: Mountainpaw

Big reddish-brown tom with cream paws

Ashstream

Old she-cat with thin white coat and burned ear

A: Willowpaw

Black she-cat

Mothpelt

Spotted she-cat

A: Icepaw

Sootclaw

Black tom

Queens

Birchwing

Brown she-cat

Kits: Nightkit

Honeypelt

Honey-colored she-cat with hazel eyes

Elders

Fightningoak

Scrawny light brown tom

Lightningpelt

Gray and white she-cat

Mossleg

White she-cat

ThunderClan Allegiances

Leader: Willowstar

White she-cat with green eyes

A: Violetpaw

Deputy: Stormfeather

Dark gray she-cat with grayish-blue eyes

A: Robinpaw

Sleek blue-gray she-cat with sharp blue eyes

Medicine Cat: Mintbreeze

Ginger she-cat with a splash of white on her muzzle and mint green eyes

A: Dovepaw

White tom with gray splashes on his pelt

Warriors

Sunblaze

Ginger tom with blue eyes

A: Moonpaw

Gray she-cat with green eyes

Firefrost

Light ginger tom with sea-green eyes

A: Birchpaw

White tom with brown spots on his back and warm amber eyes

Bluefire

Ginger she-cat with shining blue eyes

A: Lightpaw

Light gray tom with light violet blue eyes

Flameburst

Golden tom with amber eyes

A: Owlpaw

Dark Gray tom with sharp dark blue eyes

Lightningflame

Old, rarely nice light gray she-caat with stormy gray eyes

A: Sparklepaw

Pretty sand-colored she-cat with blue eyes and permenant sparkle in her eyes

Foxflight

Sneaky ginger tom with amber eyes

A: Nightpaw

Dark-colored tom with blue eyes

Goldenblaze

Golden tom with green eyes

A: Flamingpaw

Flame-colored tom with light blue eyes

Firebird

Light grayish-gingerish she-cat with gray eyes

A: Rosepaw

Cream-colored she-cat with soft green eyes

Graystorm

Gray tom wit blue eyes

A: Wolfpaw

Fierce strong gray tom with amber eyes

Queens

Honeybreeze

Honey-colored she-cat with green eyes

Kits: Snowkit (Beautiful white she-cat with icy blue eyes), Crookedkit (tabby tom with crooked paw)

Elders

Blazingfoot

Old tom with protective nature

Rainbowflame

Multi-colored she-cat with yellow eyes

RiverClan Allegiances

Leader: Splashstar

Silver she-cat with intense blue eyes and white paws

A: Darkpaw

Dark brown tom with dark brown eyes

Deputy: Dovesong

Light gray she-cat with darker swirls

A: Oakpaw

Brown tabby she-cat with green eyes

Medicine Cat: Berryleaf

Tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

A: Sugarpaw

Gray she-cat with white dapples on her flank

Warriors

Ripplefur

Molted brown tom with brown eyes

Nightfur

Black she-cat with blue eyes

Silvertail

Silver she-cat with white paws

A: Leafpaw

Light brown tabby with amber eyes

Crowflight

Jet-black tom with blue eyes

Honeypelt

Yellow-brown she-cat with amber eyes

Tallfoot

Large black tom with white markings

Oakclaw

Crabby mostly gray tortoiseshell she-cat

Moonsplash

White she-cat with blue eyes

Queens

Dawnsky

Yellow-brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Bluewing

White she-cat with light blue eyes

Kits: Tallkit (Black and white tom with very long tail), Poppykit (White she-cat with blue eyes), Snowkit (White tom with

yellow eyes)

Elders

Adderstrike

Gray tom with long front teeth and green eyes

Longfang

Light gray tom with long front teeth and blue eyes

Greenthroat

Large brown tom with white muzzle and green eyes

Flowerdrop

Pretty ginger she-cat with brown eyes


	3. Chapter One

**Here's Chapter One! N'joy!**

Chapter One

"Push, Birdsong, push!" Shimmerpool urged encouragingly. "You have a little she-kit, plus two more coming." The black queen yowled in agony as a tiny shape tumbled out. Owlwing immediately nipped the sack open and started licking the kit fiercely the wrong way to warm him up.

Another spasm shook Birdsong and she screeched in pain. One last shape slithered out, and Birdsong collapsed, exhausted. Owlwing followed suit with the last little kit.

"Two toms and a she-kit," Shimmerpool announced. "Beautiful, healthy, and strong." Birdsong purred proudly, but stopped abruptly. The she-cat was black, like her mother, and one of the toms was gray, like his father, but the last kit had a bright, flame-colored pelt. It wasn't possible. The new mother glanced at the medicine cat, and saw her own surprise reflected there. The she-cats exchanged silent looks.

"He is still my kit and I still love him as much as my other kits," Birdsong defended him, raising her head and wrapping her tail around him tightly.

"I never said anything against him," Shimmerpool murmured. "He is just... special." Birdsong nodded in satisfaction.

The bracken trembled as a sturdy gray tom pushed his way into the nursery. Shimmerpool glanced at the ginger kit one more time before disappearing, making room for the father of the kits.

"Nightwhisper," Birdsong purred at the sight of her mate. The new father gazed proudly at his new kits. As Birdsong had expected, a shadow of surprise flitted across his face.

"A ginger tom?" he meowed, tilting his head questioningly. Birdsong shrugged.

"I don't know why," she answered quietly. "What should we name them?" she asked in stronger voice, changing the subject. Nightwhisper's face brightened at the thought.

"The gray tom will be Ivykit," he decided. "And the she-cat's name is Darkkit."

"Darkkit..." Birdsong trailed off hesitantly, a shadow of doubt flickered across her face. "Are you sure?" Nightwhisper nodded confidently.

"Why don't you name our last one?" he offered, nodded to the flame-colored kit. Before she could reply, the bracken trembled again to reveal two cats, one dappled gray, one golden, padding into the den.

"Sunblaze, Spottedclaw," Nightwhisper dipped his head in acknowledgement to the elders.

"We came to see the kits," Sunblaze meowed. Birdsong shifted aside to reveal the three sleeping kits, all curled up next to each other. Sunblaze purred gently, and even Spottedclaw's eyes softened as he grunted approvingly. Then the golden she-cat turned her eyes to the parents, silently asking about the ginger tom. Birdsong gave her a look that said, _Not now. _Sunblaze nodded in understanding, then asked,"What are their names?"

"The gray tom is Ivykit, and the black she-cat is Darkkit," Nightwhisper meowed proudly. Birdsong glanced at her mate hesitantly.

"Darkkit..."

"The ginger one reminds me of the great Firestar of ThunderClan," Sunblaze meowed. "I was only a kit when he died, but my mother described him well and praised him. What is his name?"

"He doesn't have one yet," Birdsong replied.

"You could name him Firekit," Sunblaze suggested. "After Firestar." Nightwhisper glanced at his mate, waiting for her answer.

"Just a suggestion," Sunblaze mewed lightly, padding out of the den with Spottedclaw behind her.

"Firekit," Birdsong murmured. "I like that," she mewed, raising her head to gaze up at her mate. Nightwhisper nodded in agreement.

Wolfstar, the ShadowClan leader, poked her head in.

"New warriors for ShadowClan," she commented approvingly. "They look healthy."

"They are healthy, according to Shimmerpool, and Shimmerpool is never wrong at things like this," Birdsong praised the medicine cat.

"They will make fine warriors," Wolfstar murmured. She touched her nose to each of the sleeping forms before returning to the clearing. One by one, the rest of the Clan came in to visit and praise the newborn kits.

Soon night fell, and the crescent moon climbed slowly into the sky. Birdsong lay in the nursery, her kits nestled in the warm curve of her belly. A small mewling came from the flame-colored one as he snuggled closer to his mother.

_Firekit, _Birdsong thought fondly, wrapping her tail protectively around her youngest son. _Make me proud._


	4. Chapter Two

**Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Here's Chapter Two. Enjoy!**

Water rippled gently, reflecting starlight. Branches of trees wavered gently in the wind. Bluestar gazed down into the lake in confusion, where the Warrior camps were pictured. _How did Firestar end up in ShadowClan? Tallstar in RiverClan? Nightstar in WindClan? Crookedstar in ThunderClan? How? _

A large orange tom with amber eyes and big white paws padded out of the trees, disrupting her thoughts.

"What did you call me here for?" the orange tom questioned, gazing up at Bluestar expectantly. The wise ThunderClan leader said nothing, she just kept her gaze fixed on the lake's flat surface.

Not long after Thunderstar's appearance, a long-furred silvery gray tom with green eyes silently entered the clearing. Thunderstar dipped his head to acknowledge Riverstar's arrival, but Bluestar remained silent.

The cats waited in silence. After a while, a wiry brown she-cat with yellow eyes padded down the slope.

"Windstar is present," the brown she-cat declared.

"So is Shadowstar," came a silky meow. The cats whirled around to find a thick-furred black she-cat with green eyes sitting at the edge of the trees. No one had noticed her appearance.

"Next time don't creep up on us like that!" the brown she-cat snarled, bristling.

"I didn't," the black she-cat answered smoothly. "You just didn't notice me."

"Let's just start with the meeting already," Thunderstar suggested hurriedly. The quarreling cats glared at him, but they grudgingly turned back to the lake, deliberately trying to smooth their fur.

After a moment, the blue-furred she-cat finally turned her back on the water and faced the gathered cats, all whom had been founding leaders.

"We have a problem to discuss," she announced somberly. "Why? How did they end up in the wrong places? We got it all wrong..."

Shadowstar stepped forward. "Perhaps the concentration needed for the reincarnation wasn't provided. In other words, maybe some cats weren't concentrating or didn't care enough to..." She looked pointedly at the cats around her. Riverstar jumped up, arching his back and bristlingin rage. He wasn't the only one.

"How _dare_ you accuse us of that?" He spat furiously. "We were all trying our hardest. Maybe you were the one not concentrating!"

"Stop!" Thunderstar yowled commandingly, causing the two cats to stare at him in surprise. "It is useless to argue like this," he meowed calmly, now that he had the attention of the two leaders. "What's done is done. Right now we should be trying to figure out what happened."

"I think we should leave Firestar, Tallstar, Nightstar, and Crookedstar as they are." Windstar stepped forward. "After all, what can we do? We obviously aren't going to kill them, and the bodies of the cats they are in also have spirits. We can't ask them to leave their Clan, and the other Clans most likely won't accept cats from other Clans anyway.

"Not unless StarClan told them to," Riverstar mewed. Windstar considered this.

"What do you think?" she asked the other founding leaders.

"I don't think StarClan should get _too _involvedin this," the ThunderClan leader voiced his opinion. "I mean, obviously we have to because this was our plan in the first place, but sometimes it's better just to leave things as they are and see what happens."

"I agree with Thunderstar," Windstar meowed. "I think we should just see how well they manage without us interfering more." Shadowstar simply nodded her agreement.

"Alright then," Bluestar meowed. "We just... wait." But her expression was still troubled. She turned back to the lake, and her small sigh was barely audible. "We just... wait."


	5. Chapter Three

**Hey everyone! I haven't started replying to people's reviews, but I will now. I won't be repliying to reviews from other chapters though.**

**purplesunrisedragon: Even though your suggestions for the reborn leaders are awesome, I would prefer not change it now. They won't show up very much in the story anyway. And I do have plans for Firekit and Darkkit, but you'll find out when it finally comes around. ;)**

**Guest: Thanks for your support!**

"Come on, Darkkit, let's go explore the camp!" Firekit meowed excitedly. Ivykit was waiting impatiently at the entrance to the nursery.

"Let's go, Firekit," Ivykit hissed exasperatedly, scraping at the sand impatiently. "She doesn't want to come anyway."

"Come on, Darkkit," Firekit encouraged. "Let's go."

"GO AWAY!" Darkkit growled, lashing out with her tiny unsheathed claws. "I don't want to explore with you, so go away!"

Birdsong pulled her daughter close and whispered some soothing words to her. Then she lifted her head to gaze at Firekit.

"Why don't you and Ivykit go play by yourself for a while," Birdsong told Firekit softly. Firekit's gaze dropped. He wanted to go explore the camp for the first time with both littermates, but he respected his mother too much to argue.

He followed his brother outside. The bright glare of the sun hit his eyes unexpectedly, and he blinked in surprise.

"You must be the new kits!" a cheerful voice mewed excitedly. The toms spun around to see a pretty golden she-cat with leaf-colored eyes. Firekit couldn't help but stare, captivated by her striking green eyes. Ivykit nudged his brother softly, saving him from major embarrassment. Blood rushed into Firekit's cheeks. The flame-colored kit shook his head to get out of his trance.

"Thanks," he muttered to Ivykit.

"I'm Lightningpaw," she meowed. "One of the apprentices." She gazed at the kits, then frowned slightly.

_Did I do something wrong?_ Firekit thought worriedly. _Why is she upset?_

"Where's your sister?" Lightningpaw asked, glancing around.

"She didn't want to come," Ivykit replied, shooting a quick look at Firekit to see if he had stopped staring.

"Do you want me to show you around the camp?" Lightningpaw offered. "I'm sure Wolfstar won't mind." _Really? _Firekit wanted to yowl to the sky excitedly, but he held back.

"I won't mind if you take a minute to ask me first," a stern growl came from above them. The kits tipped their heads to see a black she-cat towering over them on a huge boulder. _She's so big! _Firekit thought, shrinking back.

Lightningpaw dipped her head. "I'm sorry, Wolfstar." _Wolfstar! _Firekit gaped. _The Clan leader! I want to be like her when I grow up._

Wolfstar's gaze softened when her eyes fell on the kits. "Go ahead, show them around," Wolfstar meowed. "But I want you at the training hollow at sunhigh." Lightningpaw dipped her head once more and the leader of ShadowClan padded toward the fresh-kill pile.

"Are you the leader's apprentice?" Firekit asked in awe. Lightningpaw turned back to them.

"Yes," she replied, whiskers twitching with amusement at the kits' awed expressions. "She's scary sometimes, but she the best mentor ever. Now, what about the camp?"

Firekit bounded forward, Ivykit at his side. "Let's go!"

"Alright, alright," the golden apprentice meowed. She padded over to a small bramble thicket and stopped in front of an opening.

"This is the apprentice den," she explained. Another golden head stuck out.

"And you must be the new kits!" she mewed.

"This is my sister, Honeypaw," Lightningpaw introduced her sister. This time it was Ivykit's turn to stare. Firekit's whiskers twitched in amusement. _The tables are turned, _he smirked as he nudged Ivykit gently. The dark gray tom blinked and purred gratefully. Lightningpaw went back to the explanation.

"You'll be sleeping here in about four moons," she told the kits. "Now let's go. We still have the whole camp to explore!"

"Did you let Wolfstar know you're showing the kits?" Honeypaw asked in softly.

"Yes, but let's not get into that conversation," Lightningpaw meowed quickly. "See you at the training hollow, Honeypaw. Let's go, kits!"

They marched across the clearing, and Lightningpaw stopped in front of a tree stump.

"This is the warriors den," the golden she-cat mewed, gesturing with a paw toward the den. Cats were curled around the trunk and under the leaves. "Honeypaw and I will be living here soon."

_We won't be apprentices together? _ Firekit thought disappointedly. _I can't hope they won't pass their assessments, but I really want to be with Lightningpaw_.

"Excuse me," came a deep meow from behind the them. Lightningpaw spun around and Firekit saw a red tinge creep into her face. He turned around and found a dark brown tabby tom waiting there.

"Who are you?" he asked. _Why does Lightningpaw look embarrassed?_ The tom's whiskers twitched. Firekit lifted his head indignantly. _Why are you laughing at me?_

"I am Tigerstripe," the tom meowed. "You must be Ivykit."

"Actually, I'm Firekit," Firekit meowed crossly. _I'm orange, Ivykit's gray. How could anyone mistake me for Ivykit?_

"I was talking to your brother," Tigerstripe sneered. "You're Firekit, duh. Anyone who saw someone so ugly would be able tell you're Firekit."

Firekit's mouth dropped open in shock. Ivykit went to stand beside Firekit, pressing reassuringly next to his brother.

"Hey!" he growled angrily, glaring at Tigerstripe. "Don't say that! If Firekit's ugly, you _don't_ want to know what you are." Firekit twined his tail with Ivykit's gratefully. He waited for Lightningpaw to back Ivykit up, but she remained silent, staring at her paws and shifting uncomfortably, as if she didn't know who's side to take.

"Let's go, Firekit," Ivykit meowed, his glare at Tigerstripe not wavering a bit. He led Firekit back across the clearing to the nursery.

"I'll see you later!" Lightningpaw called to Firekit and Ivykit after Tigerstripe had disappeared into the warriors den. Firekit was stung by her betrayal, and didn't answer. Neither did Ivykit. _I can't believe she didn't stand up for me. _They padded next to Birdsong and Darkkit, who were sleeping. Firekit curled up next to his sister, and Ivykit settled next to Firekit. The two of them fell asleep listening to their mother's and sister's gentle snores.

Firekit woke up to the sound of Emberstrike sending out the dusk patrol. He glanced around the nursery. Birdsong and Darkkit were gone, but Ivykit was still curled up next to him.

"Check the ShadowClan border," the deputy ordered. "There has been some activity over there and we don't want any Clan to think we're not guarding our borders well."

Leafblossom, the leader of the patrol, acknowledged Emberstrike's meow with a flick of her ear and she took off into the forest, Dewpaw, Blackfeather, and Swiftfoot on her tail. Firekit padded sleepily into the clearing and yawned. Emberstrike's head swiveled around and she gazed at Firekit fondly.

"Firekit," she meowed, dipping her head. Firekit could see playfulness in her eyes as she pretended to treat him like a warrior. "Fire_heart._"

"Emberstrike!" someone's cross meow came from across the clearing. Emberstrike turned her head sharply at the meow. Firekit tilted his head. _Why is that cat so mad?_ Sunblaze was sitting by the elders den, munching on a vole. She stared at Emberstrike sternly.

"Fireheart was the warrior name of Firestar of ThunderClan," the golden she-cat hissed. "Don't misuse it." Emberstrike nodded uncertainly.

"All right then, Fire_blaze_," Emberstrike purred, turning her attention back to Firekit after Sunblaze's scolding. Firekit purred happily. _I'm going to be the greatest warrior in the forest! _he thought proudly. _Maybe I'll even be like-"_

"Emberstrike!" came a yowl from the leader's den. "Come here."

_Or Wolfstar! _Firekit thought gleefully. _I will be Firestar, the leader of ShadowClan!_

"Firekit!" Lightningpaw hurried across the clearing. Firekit's happiness immediately vanished and was replaced by the flash of betrayal that he had felt when Lightningpaw stood there while he was being insulted by Tigerstripe. _I thought she was my friend! But she didn't say a thing against him!_

"Firekit!" Lightningpaw repeated. "Can I talk to you?"

"You're talking to me now," Firekit answered shortly.

"Can I talk to you _alone?" _Lightningpaw corrected herself, trying to keep her temper. After all, she knew he was probably hurt after... the situation. Firekit grudgingly turned around and stomped toward her.

"I'm sorry," she began hesitantly.

"What for?" Firekit meowed. Lightningpaw looked surprised at his answer.

"For not sticking up for you," Lightningpaw dropped her head. "It's just... me and Tigerstripe..." Understanding hit Firekit like a flash of lightning. _She _likes _Tigerstripe!_

"Why would you? After all, Tigerstripe's right, I'm ugly and repulsive and horrifying," Firekit spat bitterly.

"Firekit!" Lightningpaw exclaimed in shock. "You are most _definitely _not ugly!"

"Then why didn't you say anything?" Firekit retorted.

"That's why I'm apologizing," Lightningpaw's voice quieted in guilt. "Because I should have stood up for you."

Firekit purred loudly. After all, Clanmates forgive each other, right?

"Would you like me to show you the rest of the camp?" Lightningpaw offered.

"It's alright, I already saw everything," Firekit mewed regretfully. Lightningpaw's gaze dropped.

"Oh, it's alright," she replied disappointedly. _Let's see, is there anything that I can do with Lightningpaw? _Firekit thought desperately. _Maybe sneak out of camp with her, no, we might get caught and both of us will be in trouble... or maybe she can show me the prey pile? No, I'm not old enough yet. Uggghhh!_

"I'll see you around," Lightningpaw meowed, looking crestfallen as she padded away. Firekit searched frantically for a reason to call her back, but he couldn't find anything to say. He watched helplessly as Lightningpaw disappeared into the apprentice den.

"I've never seen a cat look so disappointed," a teasing voice came from behind him. Ivykit had crept up while Firekit was gazing after Lightningpaw.

Firekit turned to face his brother. He gave a small sigh and dropped his head, eyes closed.

"Or depressed," Ivykit meowed softly. "What happened?"

Firekit padded over to the nettle patch and sat down, making himself comfortable.

"You know when Tigerstripe teased me earlier?" Firekit began. Ivykit nodded, listening keenly. "And you know when Lightningpaw just stood there? Well she just apologized, and we were cool again. She offered to finish showing me around the camp, but I already saw it, and there's nothing much I can do with her.

Ivykit rested his tail gently on Firekit's shoulders.

"How 'bout sharing tongues?" he suggested. Firekit froze.

"Mousebrain!" he yowled furiously at himself. "Why didn't you think of that?!"

"Quiet down, Firekit," Ivykit hissed. "You'll attract attention." Firekit buried his head in his paws and prayed to StarClan that Lightningpaw would forgive him for forgetting something so obvious.

"It's not all your fault," Ivykit comforted. "Lightningpaw didn't mention it either."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Firekit hissed. _Now she'll never like me..._ Ivykit stared at his paws awkwardly, not knowing how to handle the situation. "Hey, there's Lightningpaw right now!" Ivykit chirped suddenly. Firekit whirled around and gazed at her as she padded across the clearing.

"Here's your chance," Ivykit murmured in Firekit's ear encouragingly. "Go for it."

Firekit took a deep breath and padded over. _Here goes nothing..._

"Hi, Lightningpaw," he meowed hesitantly, forcing cheerfulness. He felt the golden she-cat's green gaze burning into his pelt, and he forced himself not to look down.

"Hey there, Firekit," Lightningpaw purred. _Whew..._

"Do you want to... share tongues?" Firekit finally let it out and dropped his gaze. Suddenly he heard a purr. His head shot up and he saw Lightningpaw purring at him. _Did I do something embarrassing? I knew I shouldn't have asked her!_

"Of course," she meowed happily. Firekit sat down without thinking about it and suddenly he felt Lightningpaw's rough tongue rasping over his back. He smiled and quickly slid his own tongue along her fur, enjoying the warm sensation of being near Lightningpaw.


End file.
